Inbound2Grow

An inbound operating system consists of all of the systems, programs, and tools your company uses every day. An inbound operating system keeps everyone in the organization on the same page and working toward the same mission. [4:50] Question: Why is an Inbound Operating System Important? An inbound operating system is important because it provides a framework for cohesion. When you think about your organization your mission is the why, the strategies you employ are the how, and the operating system enables the what. The operating system provides the tools, systems, and process you need to follow through on your mission and your MSPOT. “Transparency without context is chaos.” – JD Sherman Want to learn more about inbound operating systems? Check out Episode 11: What is an Inbound Operating System? [19:00] Todd’s Truth Inbound leaders hold teams accountable, but the teams come up with the plans and execute. The Inbound Operating system keeps them on track along with the MSPOT. [19:34] 3 Takeaways Links Industrial Executive (https://www.toddhockenberry/theindustrialexecutive) Take the Inbound Organization Assessment (https://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment) We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

This is it, the last episode of Inbound2Grow. It’s been a great year, and we want to thank everyone who has listened to, reviewed, read, or otherwise enjoyed the show. Inbound2Grow allowed us to explore the concepts we laid out in Inbound Organization, but we feel like we’ve covered the bases and it’s time for something new which brings us to the Industrial Executive. The Industrial Executive podcast will pick up where we left off in Inbound2Grow except we’ll be focused on talking to actual leaders and executives in the industrial manufacturing space. The goal of the new podcast is to focus on our primary persona, B2B executives, and their issues, which certainly include inbound and inbound organization concepts, but not exclusively. Industrial Executive will feature a new, interview format but we’ll also have an episode here and there with a format similar to Inbound2Grow, including the voice of Dan Tyre. We hope you choose to follow the new combined show at theindustrialexecutive.com. Links Industrial Executive New! Take the Inbound Organization Assessment Online (https://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback.

Every company, regardless of what they sell, is impacted by technology. From the technology you use internally to track sales to the chatbot your clients use to talk to you, technology has the potential to create a superior, remarkable, and memorable customer experience. [1:29] Question: What do Inbound and Technology Have to do with One Another? Every piece of technology you use and your customers use to interact with you should be simple and accessible. Technology should be simple to use out of the box, easy to set up, and easy to figure out. The easier it is to use, the happier your customers are going to be. And the same goes internally. Giving good people bad systems is a recipe for employee churn. You should also be leveraging technology to automate redundant and low-value work. Things like follow up emails, lead intelligence, lead notifications, sending emails through the CRM, and meeting tools are all opportunities for your internal technology to support and enhance the customer experience by supporting your employees. You should be using technology to create a centralized view of your customer. Externally, tools like chatbots, knowledge bases, and conversations are opportunities to curate your customer experience. Technology should be enhancing the experience of your customers, clients, and leads. “Inbound thinking pervades everything for us from product development to customer service to technology. We built the product based on the specific feedback of our members and the problems they wanted to solve and the relationships we have, and how we make their lives easier, so we end up having a sticky connection with them and their struggles. It all goes back to the inbound idea. It’s all about people and relationships.” Liz Connett, Fattmerchant [20:43] Dan’s Rant This is the year. Now is the time. [21:00] Todd’s Truth A centralized view of the customer is a must. [21:23] 3 Takeaways This doesn’t have to be hard. There is a lot of great software and tools out there There is a huge risk if you ignore the role of technology Shop yourself! Links Industrial Executive (https://www.toddhockenberry.com/theindustrialexecutive) Is there a marketing person leading the IT team? - https://seths.blog/2018/11/is-there-a-marketing-person-leading-the-it-team/ Take the Inbound Organization Assessment (https://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment) We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

Very few companies think about how their accounting, finance, or legal departments impact their customer's success. But if you’ve ever had a bad experience wading through a 20-page legal document or spent hours on hold trying to correct a bill, you know that those interactions impact how you feel about a company as a customer. A bad enough experience with a back office department can make a customer walk away, but conversely, a great experience can support and add to the customer success journey. And that is why an inbound back office is a critical part of building an inbound organization. [0:43] Question: What is an Inbound Back Office and Why Does it Matter? A department is part of the back office if it is a non-customer facing department. This covers departments like operations, legal, and accounting as well as support staff and IT. Back office departments aren’t traditionally customer facing, and so they tend to be less connected to the buyer, the buying journey, and the customer experience. An inbound back office pulls all of those departments into the work of curating the customer success journey. An inbound back office takes the position that it is essential that it is easy for customers to opt-in, buy, pay, leave, understand legal requirements, access account information, and get questions answered. An inbound back office makes these processes easy and is essential for creating a unified customer experience. In an inbound organization all of the systems in place enable your employees to help, they exist to support and solve for the customer. Often back office systems get put in place to support the company, not the customer, but every interaction builds a customer experience. Your products and customer-facing people are important, but the back office is also part of the experience and relationship. It is important that interactions with the back office are supporting the relationship and building an amazing customer experience. “We see legal as being a supporter of the inbound culture by helping employees prepare for and manage the responsibilities of transparency. Transparency also imposes a burden on legal. We cannot only say no but must explain our decisions regarding the culture code and the business objectives. We must be transparent with our team, including partners and vendors because we know this process builds trust.” - John Kellenher [20:54] 3 Takeaways Links Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

Ecosystems are easy to overlook. Most often the business of running a business, building and maintaining a thriving company culture, and building an inbound organization take center stage. But whether you know it or not, you’re already in an ecosystem. All of the people and companies you work with, everyone your business touches, form your ecosystem. The greatest choice you have is whether you nurture and actively build that ecosystem or simply exist in it passively. [0:45] Question: What is an Inbound Ecosystem? So, what is an inbound ecosystem? Your ecosystem consists of: Anyone and everyone you work with, collaborate with, or share the same space with is in your ecosystem. What makes an ecosystem inbound is actively engaging with and working toward making your ecosystem a source of value for everyone in it. The work of creating an inbound ecosystem begins with your employees and then moves to your customers. Employees are first because you can’t have happy customers without happy employees. We’ve spent a lot of timing talking about why employees are essential, so we won’t rehash it here but if you want to learn more check out this episode (https://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound2grow/episode-109-putting-people-first) or this episode (https://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound2grow/what-is-a-culture-code). Your customers are second because your customers are already connected digitally, you can either engage with and support those connections or ignore them. It is beneficial to you to acknowledge and engage with them. Bringing your customers into your inbound ecosystem as active participants allows you to create more value for them. Creating value is at the heart of the inbound ecosystem. When everyone involved works to create value, everyone benefits. There is value in the connections that are made, sharing experiences, and working together to solve problems Inbound ecosystems are strategic. Understanding them and nurturing them allows you to not only create the most value for yourself but also for everyone involved. [22:57] Todd’s Truth “It takes a network to defeat a network,” Stanley McChrystal Because everyone is interconnected, you need to create a network or ecosystem that is better than your competitors to succeed in your marketplace. [23:15] 3 Takeaways Links Inbound Organization Assessment We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

If you’ve ever connected with someone on LinkedIn or got a new follower on Twitter and then immediately got a direct message asking you to check out their product/service, set up a call, or any other pitch you’ve experienced a sales fail. [0:35] Todd’s Rant Too often modern salespeople utilize outdated tactics that fall flat in the age of inbound. Time wasting cold calls, unsolicited emails, and cold outreach of all kinds are holdovers from the 90s era of spam and like Smash Mouth’s All-Star, most people in 2018 would rather not. The worst part of pushy sales tactics is that they don’t just annoy people, they make your prospects loath you. Time wasting cold outreach where the salesperson has done zero research is less likely to land you in a spam folder and more likely to result in a prospect that will never work with you and is more than happy to tell anyone who will listen how awful you are. Cold calling is high-risk behavior. And your prospects can tell when you haven’t done your research beforehand and are doing your qualifying on the phone. If you don’t know who you’re talking to, what they do, what they need, and how to help them, then you’re not ready to pick up the phone. All of this isn’t to say that you can’t reach out to someone you don’t have a personal relationship with, but how you approach cold outreach and set the stage makes all the difference. If you know your prospect and can speak immediately to their problems may be, they’ll listen. For instance, don’t start talking about your product. No one cares! Everyone cares about their problems, and if you want to succeed you need to explain how you will address/help with their problems. If you know who they are, what they are doing, and you have connected with them in a personal way then it’s much more powerful and more likely they will be receptive to your outreach. The goal is to build trust. Doing your research, listening to your prospects, and respecting their time are key. If you can’t check off all three of those boxes, then you’re deploying an outdated tactic that is more likely than not going to fail. Your tactics should show that you respect your prospects, their time, and their needs. In short, your tactics need to be inbound. [17:45] Dan’s Rant Dan’s top 3 sales fails: [20:29] Todd’s Truth Help early. Help often. Focus on your customers. “Inbound selling is a modern, buyer-centric form of sales where the seller prioritizes the buyer’s needs ahead of their own. Inbound salespeople focus on the buyer’s problem and context above all else. The inbound salesperson customizes their sales process and solution, should one exist. Smart leaders will take the time to learn about it, teach your sales reps how to become inbound sellers, and start using this method as a competitive advantage for your company in the age of the empowered buyer.” Brian Signorelli [21:15] 3 Takeaways It’s so important there is only one takeaway this week: Senior leaders need to shop themselves – experience your sales and marketing experience for the point of view of the customer Links Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the...

This week we sit down with our friend Jill Konrath to talk about the biggest issue facing sales and marketing people today. Everyone Jill talks to is overwhelmed. Everyone is too busy and feels like they aren’t getting enough done. And in today's business world everyone is also expected to always be on, responding to emails, actively engaging in social media, and generally being instantly available. The result of all of this overwhelming work and always-on culture is that distractions are rampant, we’re getting less done, and it’s hurting our ability to make sales and meet our goals. And as the work piles up, we all get farther away from the things outside of work that are important. Luckily Jill has some practical suggestions for how to minimize the distractions, manage your time effectively, and get more done with less. Our Guest! Jill Konrath’s career is defined by her relentless search for fresh strategies that actually work in today’s sales world. Jill Konrath is also a frequent speaker at sales conferences and kick-off meetings. Sharing her fresh sales strategies, she helps salespeople to speed up new customer acquisition and win bigger contracts. Her clients include IBM, GE, Microsoft, Wells Fargo, Staples and numerous mid-market firms. Jill is the author of three bestselling, award-winning books including Snap Selling and Agile Selling. You can find Jill on: LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillkonrath/) Twitter (https://twitter.com/jillkonrath) Jillkonrath.com (https://www.jillkonrath.com/) Latest book: More Sales Less Time (https://www.amazon.com/More-Sales-Less-Time-Surprisingly/dp/1591847265) Links Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

Inbound customer service is more than reactive platitudes. Customer service used to be customers calling in and spending hours on the phone waiting to tell every person they talked to the same information in the hopes that someone could fix the problem. Customers still have problems, of course, but inbound customer service and success means that the customer service people you talk to know who you are, your history with the company, and are empowered to actually solve the problem. Inbound customer service and success are built around helping customers in meaningful ways. [1:41] Question: What is Unique about Inbound Customer Service and Success? No matter how good your company is at what it does things will go wrong. They won’t always be your fault, but your customers are going to look to you to provide solutions either way. Applying an inbound approach to the process of customer service helps you to create happy, loyal customers. Typical customer service, on the other hand, often leaves people less loyal. And it’s not surprising. People don’t want a stress ball or empty, “I’m sorry to hear that.” People want solutions, and inbound customer service works diligently to provide them. Your customers don’t expect you to solve every problem immediately, but if you are empathetic and proactive in providing help customers are understanding. Airlines can’t control weather delays, but they can control the way they respond to and treat their customers who are impacted by those delays. No one needs swag; they need solutions. No one wants an airline t-shirt, but they wouldn’t say no to a free drink and a travel voucher. And getting your customer service and success right is critical. People trust reviews, ratings, and comments and if your customer service is dropping the ball, you’ll see it in what people are saying about you. “The goal is to align the promise of value, made during the earlier stages of the buyer journey, with the achievement of success by the buyer once the customer success journey begins. The promise of value must align with what the inbound service and success teams manage, so the buyer’s expectations are met.” Michael Redbord [16:30] Dan's Rant You need a customer success manager! Lean into customer service and make sure your customers are happy. Customers word of mouth is the best way to generate new business. [17:32] Todd's Truth The best way to grow in the age of buyer control is to create successful customers who become your best salespeople. [17:39] 3 Takeaways Links Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment Inbound Organization Audiobookhttps://www.audible.com/pd/Inbound-Organization-Audiobook/1469098903) We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

In the old days, we create qualified leads by offering up lots of content. Our prospects found our content, filled out a form, downloaded the content, and then we reached out to them. This strategy still works, but over the last few years, we realized that what people like more than free content is free stuff. And it turns out that giving away software, a product, or service is an even more effective way to qualify leads and move prospects through the buyer journey. [0:43] Question: What is a Code Funnel? The code funnel is an engagement strategy that allows people to have an experience with your product or software before you ask them for any commitment. This try before you buy (TBYB) strategy allows users to begin extracting value from your product quickly while creating product qualified leads (PQLs). If you’re not sold on giving away your product or service, don’t worry. It’s not uncommon for this strategy to run into some resistance at first. Embracing a code funnel or TBYB strategy has a lot of benefits. First of all, it allows you to help more people. Your product or service is solving problems and helping your customers, so the more people who are making use of it the more people you are helping. Hand in hand with this, TBYB means your product has a quicker time to value. Everyone wants solutions and help right now. The faster you can put your solutions into the hands that need them, them better. And the more prospects use your software or product, the more qualified they become. Qualified prospects rise to the top because the people who are actually using the software are more qualified than those who aren’t. This means that when you do reach out to these PQL’s you’re less disruptive because they are already qualified and ready to talk to you and you know exactly what to offer them and when to offer it. [11:13] Dan's Rant You can make a code funnel out of anything! Don’t say X product/service can’t be given away so we can’t use the code funnel. There is some way to implement try before you buy for every product or service. [16:23] Todd's Truth “The best way to engage buyers is to anticipate what problems they want to solve, diagnose how they research solutions, and help them solve those problems is a fast, comprehensive, and personalized way.” Companies that make it easy will be the ones that win. [19:02] 3 Takeaways Links Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment Inbound Organization Audiobook (https://www.audible.com/pd/Inbound-Organization-Audiobook/1469098903) We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

Everyone says they are customer-centric, but, like most things, being customer-centric is more difficult than just saying it. Further, what passed for customer-centric five years ago doesn’t cut it today. Today’s modern buyers expect more from the companies they work with and buy from. For a company to be truly customer-centric, they need to be solving for the customer across all levels of their organization. In other words, to be customer-centric, you need to be an inbound organization. [0:37] Question: What Does Being Customer-Centric Mean? Being a customer-centric business means that your organization is built from the mission up with your customer's success in mind. Your mission shouldn’t be about you; it should be about your customer. The decisions you make should be based on your customers best interests. The content you host on your website should be tailored to every stage of the buyer journey (even customers), and it should be personalized. Being custom-centric is more than just having great service. Customer service is reactive, customer-centric means proactively ensuring your customers are solving their problems and succeeding. If you just pay lip service to your customers, you’re not customer-centric. [17:08] Todd's Truth Employee experiences lead to customer experiences. [17:48] 3 Takeaways Links Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment Inbound Organization Audiobook (https://www.audible.com/pd/Inbound-Organization-Audiobook/1469098903) We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

Back in the day, in the 90’s, selling used to be boots on the ground, go out, and educate clients and prospects face to face. You would take them lunch or snacks and hope they wanted to sit down with you. Marketing wasn’t involved with demand generation or awareness; their role was more about supporting sales people. And there were lots of sales people, typically men, and very few marketing people, typically women, because salespeople were seen as a way to drive revenue (more field salespeople = more sales) while marketing was an expense. Fast forward to today, and the landscape looks nothing like this. [0:45] Question: Why is Marketing More Important than Sales in 2018? Buyers have more control than ever before. With the internet at their fingertips, buyers self-educate and qualify companies long before they ever want to talk to a salesperson. And buyers have access to you and all of your competition with equal ease. Which is why in today’s market, you can add salespeople, take out an ad, etc. but the biggest impact on growth happens when you focus on the customer journey, and that’s where marketing lives. Marketing creates the content prospects find, the education material they are digesting long before they call you, and marketing shapes the buyer journey from the first touch onward. Marketing should be the part of your organization that understands the customer and the buyer journey better than anyone else. In the old days, leads came from sales prospecting. Now, cold calling and traditional prospecting is the least effective way to find leads. Marketing should be doing the initial qualification through the buyer journey so that salespeople are talking to prospects who have already done their research, know what they want, and what you can do to help them. Now, sales prospecting should look like networking, working connections with existing customers, and working within your ecosystem. Marketing aligns the company with what they buyer wants; they’re the voice of the customer. There isn’t anything more important than that! [10:05] Dan's Rant Sales spamming is terrible! If you reach out on LinkedIn and immediately pitch the person you’re connecting with, you are spam. Worse, you have now ruined all of your credibility, and the chances of that contact ever doing business with you just went into the garbage. This tactic is just plain stupid and counterproductive. [17:03] Todd's Truth “Customer experience is the new marketing.” Brian Solis Marketing needs to have a seat at the table. [17:18] 3 Takeaways Links Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessmentBuyer Personashttps://www.amazon.com/dp/1118961501 Inbound Organization Audiobookhttps://www.audible.com/pd/Inbound-Organization-Audiobook/1469098903) We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review) P.S. Are you enjoying the podcast? Did you read Inbound Organization? Taking a quick moment to rate and review Inbound2Grow and Inbound Organization on whatever service you use is the best way to let us know how we’re doing. Your ratings and reviews make a big difference, and we appreciate you taking the time to provide your feedback. Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

For all of the companies out there dedicated to being inbound organizations and helping their customers succeed, there are ten more who aren’t. It is not uncommon for inbound to enter an organization through the marketing or sales department first. This means that often the first hurdle to becoming an inbound organization is getting leadership buy-in. [0:43] Question: What do You do if Your Leadership Doesn’t Buy into Inbound? Education is often the first step on the road to becoming an inbound organization. The sales or marketing department (or even just one of two people internally) are faced with the task of educating leadership and selling inbound internally. Understanding what inbound means and the changes that precipitated it are key steps to securing leadership buy-in. One of these changes includes increased competition, a fact that most leadership is keenly aware of. Most companies today have more competition than they did in years past, and buyers find that competition faster than ever before. With the internet at their fingertips, buyers are empowered to educate themselves and discover options like they never were in the past. This has fundamentally changed the buyers and the buying process itself, which is something many leaders don’t believe. Or, rather, they don’t believe it of their buyers, although they might admit it’s true of buyers in other industries. For older, larger companies it is not uncommon for leadership to persist in this belief that their buyers are the exception to this change. Often, they are still enjoying success and growth, so why should they believe that their buyers have changed? Unfortunately, the more time goes by the harder and harder it is to maintain previous levels of growth and success. So, how do you convince leadership that their buyers have changed, they face more competition, and the answer is to adapt and adopt inbound? The first step, as we said above, is education. Get your leadership team the resources they need to learn about inbound. There are plenty of books out there (you can find links to some of our favorite in the Links section of this post), but a quick google search for inbound + your industry should return any number of industry-specific articles and resources. Once you’ve secured some tentative buy-in, you can begin exploring other avenues like reaching out to an advisor or consultant. We also recommend taking the Inbound Organization Assessment on our website to see where your weaknesses are and where you can improve. Ultimately the goal is to get buy-in from all departments, not just leadership, and begin creating MSPOTs, Culture Codes, Inbound Operating Systems, and becoming an inbound organization. Leadership's support makes that much easier, however. [14:35] Dan's Rant Inbound is a pivot point. Yes, this is how your customers think, and yes, you do need to change. Every week you don’t become inbound your competition is, and they are getting farther ahead and reaping the rewards. [15:13] Todd's Truth “Inbound is about the size of your brain not the width of your wallet.” Brian Halligan in Inbound Organization It’s not necessarily about how much you spend; it’s about how strategic you are. [17:46] 3 Takeaways Here are three steps you can take to begin the process of convincing your leadership to buy into inbound. Links Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessmentIMPACT Branding Case Studyhttps://www.inboundorganization.com/impact-case-study Inbound Marketinghttps://www.amazon.com/Inbound-Marketing-Found-Google-Social/dp/0470499311 Inbound Sellinghttps://www.amazon.com/Inbound-Selling-Change-Match-People/dp/1119473411/ Inbound PRhttps://www.amazon.com/Inbound-PR-Agencys-Transforming-Business/dp/1119462215/ Inbound Contenthttps://www.amazon.com/Inbound-Content-Step-Step-Marketing/dp/1119488958/ We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and...

At the beginning of every organization's journey to becoming an inbound organization, there are inevitable potholes in the road. The good news is that these potholes are completely normal and can be overcome. Potholes to becoming an inbound organization can look like strategy mistakes, content pitfalls, sales stumbles, or mission blunders. Whatever potholes your organization finds in its road, the most important thing to remember is that they represent opportunities to become a better inbound organization and there is no need to fear them. Show Notes [0:39] Question: What are the Potholes to Becoming an Inbound Organization? Every organization will inevitably run into some form of pothole. Not every organization will run into every single pothole, or even most of them, but over the years there have been some common potholes we’ve seen. One of the first potholes organizations can run into is skipping their mission. We’ve talked a lot about the importance of mission, but for some companies taking the time to create a mission can seem like a waste. Or, worse, they’re an older company, and they think that just because they wrote a mission fifty years ago, it’s still relevant today. A mission has to be focused on how you are going to serve your customers. Typically, a mission will serve you for three to five years, but a 100-year-old mission is unlikely to reflect modern buyers, their needs, or the best way to help them. Your mission needs to be more than a statement on the wall. Another pothole is neglecting strategy or valuing tactics over strategy. You should be using an inbound operating system to keep everyone on track and focused on your mission. Your MSPOT should be clearly communicating the plays you will be making to achieve your overall strategy, and your inbound culture should be creating an environment in which everyone in your organization is working toward the same goals. If any of these pieces is missing, there are going to be problems. If that’s the case, don’t worry. Take a step back, figure out which piece is missing or failing you, and work on it. You need to take the time to establish these building blocks of inbound before you rush out and act. Another major area for potholes is content. There are three types of content potholes we’ve seen: Content Strangulation – The inability to put out content. Often the content creation process is a bureaucracy-heavy process that creeps along at a crawl. This long, drawn-out process doesn’t add anything to the content. Content should be a part of your everyday life. Do make sure it is well written and polished, but don’t get so bogged down you never put anything out there. Content Asphyxiation – This happens when you have taken the fun out of content and are taking it too seriously. You don’t have to be the next great American novelist to create content. Your content should be useful and relevant to your prospects. The goal is to help, not win writing awards. Content Discombobulation – This is when your content is all over the map or focused too heavily on one kind of content, all top of the funnel for instance. Content should be matched to every stage of the buyer journey, and you should have plenty for each stage. Sales is another area of common potholes. It used to be that the goal of sales was to close deals, and we’re still seeing sales people pick up the phone and qualify. An inbound organization strives to start relationships, and you should know who you’re talking to before you pick up the phone. Not having your customers best interests in mind is another sales pothole. Not every prospect would make a good customer, and you should have their best interests in mind and let them go. Similarly, not letting the customer move at their own pace through the sales funnel is a common sales pothole. If your prospect is in the education phase of their journey, don’t try and close them. [19:30] Dan's Rant Don’t fear the potholes! Everyone experiences them, but...

An inbound content strategy is so much more than just churning out feature or product-based copy and sticking it on your website. An inbound content strategy understands and accommodates your personas and every stage of the buyer journey. Great content speaks directly to your prospects, answering their questions and helping them make decisions. Show Notes [0:43] Question: What is an Inbound Content Strategy? B2B, B2C, doesn’t matter, everyone uses the internet to help them make decisions, find information, solve problems, and make purchases both big and small. Your content is often the first interaction a prospect has with your brand. In many ways, your content is your brand. The content that you create builds your brand, establishes your credibility, and creates awareness. Your inbound content strategy then is how you will create relevant, helpful content for every step of the buyer journey that answers your prospects questions, solves their problems, and helps them make decisions. There is no one kind of content that is best or right. The idea that content is a specific thing (an e-book for example) is a reliance on tactics rather than strategy. Part of your strategy is figuring out the types of content your prospects want and need. That could mean creating videos, FAQs, infographics, presentations, webinars, blog articles, or any format that fits and works for your prospects because your content is your expertise communicated in a way that your prospects want to consume. If you struggle with creating content, then you need to do a better job of understanding your persona. Who are you trying to talk to? What are their questions? What problems are they trying to solve? Great content ideas can come from your existing customers, your salespeople, and your customer service people. Do sales and customer service get the same ten questions? Take those questions and turn them into content. Your content strategy should be creating customer-centric content that is mapped to every stage of the buyer journey and formatted in whatever way works best for your persona. [18:50] Dan's Rant Lean into quality. Be smart and strategic in providing what your customers want and need. [19:03] Todd's Truth Leaders leave content to marketers at their own peril. Everyone has a stake in your organizations content and should contribute. Don't forget goals! Leaders should ensure that every piece of content has goals that can be measured. [19:21] 3 Takeaways Links We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-reviewInbound ContentBuilding a StoryBrand Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment Curious where Todd and Dan got their statistics for this show? Here are some of the stats and their sources. Links not working? View our blog post here https://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound2grow/what-is-an-inbound-content-strategy. Kleiner Perkins Internet Trends Report 2018Why You Should Lean Into How-to-Content in 2018B2C Content Marketing 2018 Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends – North America Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.y.

This episode of Inbound2Grow was recorded last week at INBOUND 2018! Recorded live in-front of INBOUND 2018 attendees, we interviewed two leaders of the inbound revolution, Eric Keiles and Jill Konrath! These two leaders have been practicing inbound as a methodology and a mindset since before it had a name. During the show we picked their brains about the good old days of inbound, inbound certified back office staff, the clients they won’t take, and the future of the inbound revolution. Our Guests! Eric Keiles Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Square 2 Marketing ou can find Eric on: LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/erickeiles/) Twitter (https://twitter.com/erickeiles?lang=en) Square2marketing.com (https://www.square2marketing.com/) Pre-Order Smash the Funnel (https://www.smashthefunnel.com/) Jill Konrath Keynote Speaker and Author of 4 Bestselling Sales Books You can find Jill on: LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillkonrath/) Twitter (https://twitter.com/jillkonrath) Jillkonrath.com (https://www.jillkonrath.com/) Latest book More Sales Less Time (https://www.amazon.com/More-Sales-Less-Time-Surprisingly/dp/1591847265) Links We’re extending the MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first-place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

Inspired by Mark Schaefer’s assertion that inbound costs increase over time, in this episode we unpack that idea and discuss the need for adaptation and adoption of inbound as a mindset rather than a methodology. Show Notes [1:50] Question: Is Inbound Still a Good Investment? The idea behind Schaefer’s post is that in the beginning, as companies invest in content creation and other inbound tactics, the investment is relatively low and easy to reach leads will find you because your niche is unsaturated. Over time, however, as more content is created and the niche becomes saturated companies have to invest more in content creation to keep up. Companies spend more to increase the volume of content, the number of emails, advertising, etc. so inbound becomes more and more expensive. On the one hand, yes to do inbound requires an investment. Inbound isn’t free, and it isn’t magic. But the reality is that traditional outbound marketing is less effective than it has ever been. Your prospects will not tolerate canned cold calls, one-size-fits-all sales tactics, or pushy advertising. Prospects want individual, personalized experiences. They want to do their research before talking to a salesperson. They want the companies they work with to help them solve their problems, not just peddle a product. They want, in short, inbound. Of course, if you begin to create content in an unsaturated niche leads will be easy to find. Of course, as time goes on, there are fewer easy leads. Yes, inbound requires continuous investment in creating amazing, high-quality, helpful content. However, inbound is still more effective than traditional tactics, and it should be less overhead. As for spending more to create greater quantities of content, that idea really misses the heart of what inbound is. If your emails, blog, whatever tactic isn’t working well then, the answer isn’t to produce more mediocre content and hope that if two emails a week weren’t working four will. You should know your persona, their struggles, their goals, their preferences, and that knowledge should inform the types of content you are creating. You should be creating content for your niche that they will love. You should be spending your money better! If your persona isn’t into long format blog posts, ditch them. If your persona wants a short format podcast (something we know a little something about), then you should be spending your money and time creating short format podcast episodes not 1000+ word blog posts. Inbound isn’t a bucket of tactics (emails, blogs, etc.) that you are bound to follow slavishly, throwing money hand over fist at the tactics and hoping they work. Inbound is a mindset that should permeate your entire organization. Inbound is about all levels of your company helping your prospects solve their problems. Helping requires an investment, sure, but being helpful is more effective and, ultimately, less costly than traditional marketing methods. If the inbound tactics you are using aren’t working and are eating up more and more of your budget, then it’s time to take a step back and figure out how your prospects want to be helped, where they want to be helped, and when they want to be helped and then go give it to them! [18:54] Todd's Truth Inbound is a mindset, not just tactics or a methodology. [19:22] 3 Takeaways Links Download and Submit Your MSPOT (https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review)Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment Why Inbound Marketing Costs Increase Over Timehttps://www.businessesgrow.com/2018/07/30/inbound-marketing-costs/ Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

A large part of being inbound is creating and maintaining engagement with your prospects and customers. From first contact with a prospect all the way through the buyer journey, engagement is how you stay connected to your prospects and deliver the information and, most importantly, the help they need to reach their goals. To effectively engage with prospects and customers every step of their buyer journey, across all levels of your organization, requires a solid inbound engagement strategy. Show Notes [0:41] Question: What is an Inbound Engagement Strategy? At its heart, engagement is about connecting people with the resources they need to achieve their goals. An inbound engagement strategy maps out how your organization will create engagement opportunities throughout the buyer journey and accomplish your goal of helping your prospects and customers. Content, and content creation are a large part of any inbound engagement strategy because content is going to be a primary driver of engagement. It is necessary to understand your buyer persona and your buyer journey so that you know what content your prospects need and when they need it. At the top of the funnel, for instance, the types of content that tend to be most useful are things like checklists and guides. Top of the funnel, or the awareness stage, content is about the problem your prospect is trying to solve, not about you. Middle of the funnel content, or the consideration stage, is where the prospect recognizes that they have a problem and begins to seek out solutions. At this point product demos, walkthroughs, and product comparisons (to name a few) give prospects more information about specific solutions and the specific ways you can help them solve their problem. At the bottom of the funnel prospects are ready to make a purchase and content that compares features or pricing is appropriate. Each stage needs to be considered and planned for in an inbound engagement strategy. An inbound engagement strategy also defines who you will help and how you will help them. It also details how each level of your organization will be involved in engagement. [18:31] Dan's Rant The code funnel, which is an extension of freemium, is something Dan feels strongly about. In fact, HubSpot offers a ton of free stuff that helps people help people. In a future episode, Dan and Todd will dive deep into the code funnel, the pit falls of giving things away, and more! [19:21] Todd's Truth Don’t get focused on any particular technology to reach prospects. Inbound organizations should remain human and personal. H2H is what people want! You build engagement through being human and personal, not through any specific technology. [19:46] 3 Takeaways Links There is still time to enter the MSPOT contest! From now until Monday, September 3, you can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and be entered into the contest. The first place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

Personas are one of the fundamentals of inbound, shaping not only your marketing and sales efforts but all levels of your company. So, what is a persona? Personas are semi-fictional representations of your ideal customer based on actual data and some speculation about things like demographics, behavior patterns, and goals. Personas represent a person, not a company or market! Show Notes [0:40] Question: What is an Inbound Persona Strategy? It is important to understand that personas are created through research and data. By interviewing current customers and prospects, reviewing user data, and speculating (based on your research and data) about behaviors and goals you create a complete view of your ideal customer. You might know some things about the type of organization they work for, but your persona work creates a picture of the actual person who is your customer, not their organization. Personas are a vital part of an inbound organization because they give focus and meaning to the work you are doing. Rather than marketing or selling a product to a particular type of company you know happens to buy that product, personas allow you to understand and help solve the problems of the specific person who has a problem. Put another way; personas allow you to think persona to person (H2H) and create content and speak directly to your buyer, not your buyer's company. Personas put your work into context and allow you to understand your buyer on an emotional level, grounding your company in market reality. It used to be that the focus was on what customers bought not why they bought. In today’s market, however, no one wants a generalist. If you want to stand out and have a competitive advantage, you need to know why people are buying and meet them where they are. You need to find your niche and personas are how you do that. [16:05] Dan's Rant Buyer personas are critically important. Dan wants you to go to HubSpot’s persona tool (Make My Persona) to learn more about personas and make your own. And, if you send us your persona, Dan and Todd will review it! [16:43] Todd's Truth Your buyer persona is a representation of the person that your organization helps the most! [17:38] 3 Takeaways Links From now until the end of August we are holding an MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and from now until the end of August anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-reviewBuyer Personashttps://www.buyerpersona.com/buyer-personas-bookhttps://www.hubspot.com/make-my-persona)Make My Persona ) Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

Strategies are high-level plans for achieving specific objectives. Strategies guide your efforts, and inbound strategies are no different from any other strategy in this regard. Where an inbound strategy differs from other strategies is that inbound strategies are more than just a guide, they are a mindset and an attitude, and they touch every level of an organization. Show Notes [0:42] Question: What is an Inbound Strategy and How is it Different from Any Other Strategy? Inbound strategies aim to create the best employee, partner, and buyer experience. Inbound strategies are based on helping, not just product strategy, or marketing strategy, or specific tactics. However, it is not uncommon for people to look at inbound tactics like blogging or email marketing and assume that implementing these tactics is synonymous with an inbound strategy. But an inbound strategy asks, and answers, some key questions like: You begin to arrive at an inbound strategy by answering these questions. Tactics are the tools you use to help your customer how they want to be helped and where they want to be helped. Inbound strategy is how you execute your mission and details how you will delight and help your customers across all levels of the organization and throughout the entirety of the buyer journey. You want strategies that blow your customers away. [16:39] Dan's Rant Selling is helping. You need a coordinated strategy so you know how your buyers are moving through the buyer journey. [17:11] Todd's Truth The opportunity to grow and succeed will come more and more from creating amazing customer experiences rather than innovating products or features. People increasingly expect that products will be performant, differentiation is created through inbound strategy. [17:38] 3 Takeaways Links From now until the end of August we are holding an MSPOT contest! You can download the MSPOT template, submit it for review, and from now until the end of August anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into the contest. The first place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment Thanks to Rebecca Miller our podcast editor, social media coordinator, and blogger and to Zachary Jameson for producing the audio for the podcast. Check out Zachary on Upwork if you need podcast audio services.

Everyone thinks they have great customer service, but can you prove it? A ten-minute-long customer survey might suggest that the survey takers are satisfied, but who is most likely to actually give you ten minutes of their time to fill out a survey? If you’re only talking to and hearing from good fit customers, then your results are going to be skewed. And unreliable results mean you don’t have accurate, measurable, actionable data. Net Promotor Score (NPS) is the solution. Show Notes [0:44] Question: What is NPS and When Should You Use It? NPS is a proxy for overall customer satisfaction and brand loyalty. NPS measures the willingness of customers (or employees) to recommend your product/service/presentation to a friend or colleague. You can also use NPS to measure how effective an event or campaign was. NSP can also be applied internally to determine your ENPS (Employee Net Promotor Score). NPS is a scored on a scale of 1-10. Respondents are asked how likely they are to recommend on a scale of 1-10 with 0-6 being detractors, 7-8 is passive, and 9-10 are promotors. When calculating you determine the number of total respondents and the number of respondents in each category. You then determine the percentage of each category. Next, you subtract the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promotors. For example, you survey 10 people and 7 were promotors, and 3 were detractors. So, 70% were promotors, and 30% were detractors. NPS = 70% - 30% = 40 There is a lot of power in knowing your NPS. In our connected world, the experiences of other people have a huge amount of influence on where we shop, what we buy, and how we spend our money. With so many choices at our finger tips user reviews, recommendations, and word of mouth make a big impact on our decision-making process. NPS helps you understand how many of your customers are out in the real-world advocating for you. Your customers should be your best sales people. [16:11] Dan's Rant Measurable trust! NPS allows you to measure trust and prove that your customers trust you. “Meh” doesn’t work anymore! [19:20] 3 Takeaways P.S. From now until the end of August we are holding an MSPOT contest! You can already download the MSPOT template and submit it for review, but from now until the end of August anyone who submits an MSPOT will be entered into our contest. The first place winner will win an hour to review their MSPOT with Todd and Dan! Links https://www.inboundorganization.com/mspot-review Inbound Organization Assessmenthttps://www.inboundorganization.com/inbound-organization-assessment